1973

JANUARY 8 Over North Vietnam, an F-4 flown by Captain Paul D. Howman and Lieutenant Lawrence W. Kullman shoots down the final MiG of the war with an AIM-7 Sparrow missile.

January 15 All Air force offensive oper­ations against North Vietnam cease once the Communists agree to return to the Paris peace talks.

JANUARY 18 In Washington, D. C., the Defense Department contracts with Fair­child Republic to produce the A-10 close support aircraft, better known to its flight crews as the “Warthog.”

JANUARY 28 Over South Vietnam, a B – 52 bomber performs the final arc light mission against suspected Communist positions. As of this date the war in Viet­nam officially ends, although aerial cam­paigns are conducted in neighboring countries.

February 12 At Hanoi, North Viet­nam, Operation homecoming unfolds as Air Force C-141s arrive to transport the first of 591 prisoners of war to Clark Air Base, the Philippines, then home. Air­crews from the Military Airlift Command (MAC) involved in this humanitarian mission receive the Mackay Trophy.

FEBRUARY 21 Over Laos, a cease-fire

between the government and Commu­nist insurgents results in an end to B-52 air strikes. However, violations of the agreement result in a resumption of attacks through April.

MARCH 28 As the last remaining Air Force aircraft depart South Vietnam, the Seventh Air Force relocates its operations to Nakhon Phanom Air Base in Thailand.

June 13 The Air Force deploys the first of its Boeing E-4A advanced airborne command posts.

August 15 Over Cambodia, B-52 bombers perform their final missions against Communist Khmer Rouge tar­gets; this concludes an eight-year-long aerial campaign, most of it clandestine.

In Thailand, an Air Force A-7D Cor­sair II performs the final bombing raid of the Southeast Asian War while an EC – 121 from Korat, Thailand, is credited with flying the last U. S. mission of this conflict. All told, the Air Force flew 5.25 million sorties since 1962 and lost 1,700 aircraft in combat.

August 20 In Pakistan, transports of the Military Airlift Command (MAC), the Tactical Air Command (TAC), and the Air Force Reserve (USAFR) convey

2,400 tons of supplies and relief equip­ment to assist victims of recent flooding.

OCTOBER 1 In Washington, D. C., Thomas N. Barnes gains appointment as the new chief master sergeant of the Air Force.

October 12-April 6 In the Middle

East, Operation GIANT REACH unfolds as nine SR-71 Blackbirds perform recon­naissance missions launched from the United States as the violent Yom Kippur War between Israel, Egypt, and Syria rages.

October 14-November 14 In Israel,

Operation NICKEL GRASS begins transport­ing war materiel to make up for losses sus­tained in the Yom Kippur War. C-5A Galaxies and C-141 Starlifters bring in

22,400 tons of supplies to offset a similar effort by the Soviet Union to Egypt and Syria. This endeavor enables the beleag­uered Jewish state to survive a well – coordinated Arab attack.

OCTOBER 6-24 In the Middle East, Operation NIGHT REACH commences as Air Force transports bring in UN peace­keeping forces to monitor the truce between Egypt and Israel.

December 13 At Fort Worth, Texas, General Dynamics rolls out its prototype YF-16 lightweight air superiority fighter; it enters production as the F-16 Fighting Falcon.